Why Does It Have To Be So Confusing?
by chrissypink24
Summary: Short chapters about Ricky's sister starting at Bullworth. Please review! You might be the deciding factor on how the story ends...
1. My Day Begins

As I woke on the last day of August I realized it was my first day at Bullworth Academy. I stretched out as much as I could and happily jumped out of bed. I walked over to my closet which held the uniform that was ugly yes, but the uniform I had waited all summer to wear. The blue was not flattering at all to my olive colored skin but I pulled it on anyway and looked in the mirror. I smiled at my reflection as I tore it back off and walked to the bathroom, towel around my body. Of course the door was shut, so I pounded it three times.

"One minute I'm doing my hair!" My brother said from the other side.

"Ricky I have to take a shower!" The door opened as my older brother Ricky stood in the doorway. People all the time would ask if we were twins. We both had the same facial features, same dark hair, and the same deep brown eyes. My hair went just below my shoulders and his hair was full of grease that he obviously had just put in to make it comb back and stay like that. "No wonder you don't have a girlfriend." I said walking past him and pushing him out of the doorway. As I showered I wondered how my first day would be. Would I meet some awesome girls that would befriend me right away? Or even better, a boy that would catch my eye, and hopefully I would catch his. I liked Lefty a lot since I was in elementary school. He hung out with Ricky all the time. But for some reason Lefty refused to come over the house last year. Maybe our mother scared him away. She was really good at that. But she was recently checked into Happy Volts Asylum for drinking too much. Maybe it will do our family some good…


	2. Wade and Chemistry

As Ricky and I walked through the gates of the school I looked around at the different faces and smiled. I had bee home school for the past eight years of my life and was looking forward to being around people. Ricky grabbed me by the shoulders and turned me toward him.

"Listen, remember what I told you. I want you to stay away from the preppies. They are rich scum bags that think that they can get whatever they want because they can afford to. Just stick with people you already know. Okay?" I pushed him away from me.

"I know Ricky fuck leave me alone. Let me figure out things for myself." He turned and started to walk away.

"What class do you have first?" He asked not turning around. I ran to catch up.

"I have umm." I pulled out my schedule. "Uh Chemistry."

"I'll walk you." He said in a stern voice. A boy with a light blue jean jacket ran up to us.

"Hey Ricky!" He said slapping Ricky in the middle of that back. My face began to fluster. "Hey Jo how are ya?" He asked hugging me.

"I'm alright Lefty how are you?" I became really nervous when he was around.

"Fine. You guys goin' to class?" He asked. I nodded Ricky glaring at the group of boys standing off to the right. They all wore expensive clothing and were very clean cut.

"Damn those guys. I wish I could just pound every last one of them." He said turning back toward the main building. I glanced back to see the boys following us, their eyes all on me. Lefty held the door open for me as I walked through. We walked to the right hallway and stood outside of the door waiting for the bell to ring. "Please Jo don't even look at those guys." The bell rang thought out the halls.

"I'll be fine Rick." I hugged my big bro and Lefty. I walked into the classroom and found an empty station in the middle of the room. Walking over to it I noticed the room was divided by cliques. Of course I sat in the middle of them all.

"Hello class my name is Dr. Watts and I am you chemistry teacher. No I am going to be splitting you into pairs. Please listen for your name and pay attention to where I send you. I do not want to do this more than once." He began calling off names. I paid attention closely to the people sitting around the room wondering why I was with one other girl in the class. "Josephine Pucino you will be paired up with Wade Martin at this station right up front." I stood up and walked over to the one indicated. A boy with red hair and stood just slightly higher than me, with bruises on his face joined me.

"Hey Wade Martin." He held out his hand to shake mine. I hesitated. "I won't bite." He said reassuringly. He smiled as I grabbed his hand and shook it.

"Alright is that everyone? Great now today we will be making itching powder. I wrote the instructions on the board. You may begin now." Wade and I talked the whole period about who in the class we should use it on and laughed the whole time.


	3. The Invite

As the day end I met some really nice people. I had not seen a greaser all day except for lunch time when Ricky found me sitting with the bully kids. He grabbed my lunch and carried it to his table lecturing me the rest of the time about how much trouble they caused. I rolled my eyes and kept my mouth shut as he rambled on and on. As soon as the bell rang to tell us lunch was over I stood up and stormed out. But now it was time to go back to the dorm and relax. I laid on the bed in the single person room and closed my eyes. My mind began to race thinking of everything that happened when I heard something tap my window. I opened my eyes and sat up listening hard. Deciding that I was imagining it I laid back down. The moment I closed my eyes I heard it again. This time I stood up and walked over to the window. Opening the window I stuck my head out and looked down.

"Oh I'm sorry we were looking for Pinky. Derby wanted to see her and told us to go get her." The shorter of the two boys yelled up.

"I think she is the next one over. Brown shoulder length hair, screechy voice?"

"Yea."

"Yup next one over." I pulled my head back in.

"Wait!" The boy yelled. I stuck my head back out. "What are you doing tonight?" He asked. I was taken aback. Why did he care?

"I'm staying in." I said plainly.

"We are having a party over at the Harrington House. My friend doesn't have a date if you want to go."

"Gord is that you?" A shrill voice said from the next window over.

"Yea Pinky! Derby wants you, and try to talk this lovely girl here to come to the party tonight." He said gesturing toward me.

"Oh it would be so fun to have another girl there please?" She begged looked at me with her bottom lip sticking out. I hated when girls would whine, but at the same time I didn't make any female friends today. I wondered if Ricky would even notice I was gone.


	4. The Party?

Walking through the wooden door of the Harrington house was a little intimidating. I had grown up pretty poor and never seen anything quite like this. Pinky grabbed my hand and pulled me through the second set of doors.

"Don't worry Jo this is going to be fun. There is alcohol and plenty of single boys. Even though you will be here with Parker. He's a nice guy though. He has never had a girlfriend so he will be easy to manipulate." The word sounded weird coming from her mouth. But I'm sure that the word 'manipulate' was something often used in her vocabulary. She walked me over to the group of boys standing next to the fireplace.

"Oh great Jo you made it. I want you to meet the boys." He introduced me to everyone. I nodded pretending I would remember everyone, but in reality I was terrible at remembering names. "And this lad here is Parker." He said pointing to the last boy. At first glance I saw that Parker was pretty cute. Nice clothes, his hair was kind of messy, and his eyes were gentle looking. He looked at me so nervously that I thought he would throw up.

"Nice to meet you Parker Ogilvie." He said nodding at me fearing that if I touched him he would pass out.

"Jo Pucino." The group gasped. I jumped not expecting that reaction. Pinky turned toward me.

"As in Ricky Pucino?" She asked.

"Yea he is my older brother."

"Gord why do you always bring the trash in here?" The boy Justin said from the back of the group. I stepped back defensively.

"I thought she was pretty and I knew Parker needed a girl so I figured it was a good thing." He said putting his hands up in surrender. Justin walked up to me angrily and pointed to the door.

"Get out of here now. You are not welcome here." He yelled. A tear began to form in my eye and I turned in shame and walked toward the door. Justin followed slamming the door behind me. I collapsed to the ground and sobbed. A moment later I felt a gentle hand on my shoulder.

"Are you okay?" The voice asked. I swung around causing the hand to fall. As I turned I saw it was Parker looking very upset at what just happened. I turned back away from him ashamed.

"Do you guys treat everyone that way? If so why did you invite me?" I cried. I saw a figure move in the shadows.

"Jo I am so sorry. If you want I can walk you back to your dorm." He said sitting next to me. I watched as the figure moved closer. I stood up.

"I'm fine I'm just a piece of trash anyway." I walked toward the figure that began to move closer. Parker grabbed my arm pulling me back.

"Listen I want you to know I had nothing to do with this. I would have loved for her to stay here." He said standing in front of me as if he was protecting me. The dark figure grabbed Parker's arm and threw him to the ground. Ricky stood over him and leaned down so that their faces almost touched.

"Don't you ever talk to my sister again. If I ever see you even look at her I will beat you senseless. Hmm actually I think I'm a little late for that." He stood up straight and walked over grabbing my wrist and pulling me toward the stairs. I turned to see the preps all emerging from the building. Parker stood up.

"Jo I am so sorry I promise I will make it up to you." He yelled as Ricky led me around the corner.


	5. Biology and Gord

A few days passed and I quickly found out just how cliquey the school really was. Once people found out I was related to Ricky they would either scoff or walk away. Today was my first Biology class and I unfortunately was paired up with Gord. We would not look at each other when we had to speak, but I knew that whole situation would come up sooner or later.

"Gord we need to talk about the other night." I finally said handing him the forceps so he could remove the frog heart. He tried to pretend to concentrate on the frog.

"What about it?" He asked removing it and holding it up until I placed the Petri dish in front of him. I saw him glance at me nervously for a split second.

"You know what." I said loudly almost offended that he was trying to play it off like he didn't know. In shock he dropped the heart on the floor and scrambled to retrieve it. As he placed it in the dish he removed his goggles.

"Look I didn't know you were Ricky's sister. If I did I would never have asked you to go. My group doesn't get along with his group." He put the goggles back on and grabbed the scalpel.

"Why not?" I asked as calmly as I could. He sighed deeply and put the scalpel down.

"To be honest my group is rich, his is poor. His group is jealous that they don't have the great life that we do. We get whatever we want no matter how much it is. Them…not unless they steal it." His British accent was almost distracting.

"So that's why you guys don't get along. It's a money thing." I said bluntly.

"Yea." He picked the scalpel back up and sliced out the stomach carefully.

"So if you guys hate each other so much how come Parker ran after me that night?" I saw him smile slightly.

"Just because we don't get along with the greasers doesn't mean that we can't find one of their girls pretty. I dated Lola." I stepped back in anger. Johnny was torn up about that for a long time. He knew that someone was with Lola, and I was sitting next to him.

"It was you?" I asked in disgust. He looked back at me.

"Yea, it's not my fault she liked kissing a rich boy." I stepped back up to the table and faced him, hands on my hips.

"Do you know that he went crazy because of it?" Gord shrugged placing the stomach in the dish and moving on to the next organ.

"Are you going to help me or am I going to have to tell Dr. Slawter that I did everything alone?" I scoffed and grabbed the forceps. "Parker really likes you and he wants you to do out to dinner with him." He said as he gestured for me to take out the next organ.

"Why so I can deal with that situation again? That and my brother will kill me." The idea sounded nice, but then I thought back to how I felt that night. Plus Wade was being extra sweet to me, and I still had feelings for Lefty.

"I'll talk to Ricky if you'll consider it." The bell rang.

"Fine I'll think about it but you have to talk to Ricky first before I make up my mind." He smiled and walked out of the room. Why did things have to be so confusing?


	6. Jealousy

I stood outside of the girl's dorm waiting anxiously for my date to show up. I flattened the front of my uniform nervously and looked toward the boy's dorm. I watched as boys walked in and out. Every time the door opened my heart jumped expecting him to walk out. Finally the door opened and it was Ricky. I watched as he jogged over to me gasping for air. He smoked about a pack and a half a day. I secretly wished he would just give it up. He approached me and breathed heavily.

"Look before you go just promise me that you will take advantage of this kid. Make him pay for what he did to you." I began to wonder.

"Why did you say yes? Like why did you agree?" I asked suspiciously.

"Well you'll find out tomorrow. You me and Lefty are skipping school and we are doing something." I secretly wish he never said anything because then I would be wondering what we were doing tomorrow all night. As I pondered the door opened and Parker emerged. Something about him made my head spin and I got the feeling like I would pass out. "Jo, don't fall for this kid. This was supposed to make up for embarrassing you. Just remember that his friends are the ones that made you feel that way." Exactly his friends did in fact hurt me, but he was right there to try to comfort me. Parker nervously walked up and looked at Ricky with more fear on his face than anyone I had ever seen. Ricky grabbed the front of Parker's shirt and pulled him close. "You hurt her, and you are dead. This better be the best night of her life." He pushed the black haired boy away and walked off. Parker had one hand behind his back and when he pulled it to the front he had a bouquet of roses.

"I bought these for you." He said glancing at me. It was so adorable how nervous he was. I grabbed the flowers and kissed his warm cheek.

"I'll go put them in water and I'll be right back." I quickly walked inside and ran to my room I found a vase with fake flowers in them. I pulled them out and ran into the bathroom filling the vase up with water. Quickly I put the roses in it and admired them for a second before turning off the light and walking back outside. As I happily walk out of the door I saw Wade in Parker's face.

"Just back off she's mine rich kid."

"Exactly I am a rich kid, know your place." Wade shoved Parker hard in the center of the chest knocking him a few steps back. Before it got out of hand I ran and positioned myself between the two.

"Both of you know your place. Ricky said this was okay so you to respect his decision."

"Yea because this guy probably paid him. You brother will do anything to get his hands on a few bucks here and there." I turned and got in Wade's face.

"What did you just say to me?" Parker grabbed my hand and pulled me away.

"He's not worth it. Please let's just go have a good time. He's just bitter that you would never stoop to his low." Parker put his arm around my shoulder as Wade came from behind and pushed us both down to the ground. Ricky emerged from around the corner and began punching Wade as Parker sat me up looking for scrapes.


	7. First Impression Isn't Last Impression

My knees were bleeding and my left elbow was missing some skin as Parker opened the door to the fancy bistro in the middle of Bullworth Vale. We sat at a small table in the corner. He looked at me with worry.

"We can postpone this. I mean things aren't getting off to a good start." I shook my head.

"If I stayed at the school any long I would freak out. Plus you owe me and I am not going to let you forget it." He looked down at the table in shame. He knew that the way I was treated the other night was uncalled for, but nothing he could have done could convince his friends that he was interested. He looked back up at me with sadness.

"Why did you agree to let me take you out?" His expression was hard to read.

"Well because Gord told me you really liked me. And you came outside that night to make sure I was okay. I mean this whole you owe me thing had little to do with it but I guess, I'm single and you're single. You cute so I figured why not. I mean Ricky isn't happy about it but he did say it was okay." Parker sat back in his chair.

"You think I'm cute?" He said almost disgusted.

"Well, yea. Why?"

"Well you are like the most beautiful girl I have ever seen. Why would you possibly like a boy like me?" He looked at me in a way that made me tingle all over. Why was this boy doing this to me? Why with every word was I starting to like him? We ate dinner over candle light. Once we were done he asked me if he could walk me back to the dorm. Agreeing we walked slowly back, talking about our interests and what we had in common. As we walked to the dorm stairs he pulled me to the side. "Jo I had a really good time. I would love it if we could do something again. I promise that next time will be better." He held my hands in his. I nodded looking at him as the moonlight shone on his face. I pulled our hands close to me causing his body to come with them. He leaned down and kissed my lips softly. As we pulled away a stupid smile swept over my face. He pulled his hands away. "Goodnight Jo." He said softly.

"Goodnight Parker." I said walking into the dorm. I know I fell asleep smiling.


	8. Needles and Kisses

The next morning I woke up still smiling remembering how great it felt to have Parker's lips against mine. I stood up and changed into a cute sundress knowing that today was the day Ricky Lefty and I were doing something. As I walked out the boys were waiting, Parker standing behind them. I walked down the stairs.

"Hey what's going on? I asked as Parker joined the group, feeling safe now that I was there. Ricky gave him a dirty look.

"We're ready to leave." Lefty said walking up and giving me a hug. "I don't know what this kid thinks he's doing." He said pointing a thumb at Parker. He nervously stepped forward.

"I just have to say something to Jo really quick then I'll let you go." He said meekly. We walked away from my brother and Lefty, just far enough so they wouldn't hear. "I just wanted to say I had a really good time last night. If you want here's my cell phone number. You can call me anytime." He handed me a piece of paper that was folded twice. I smiled and kissed his cheek.

"Thank you. You'll hear from me don't worry. I have to go before they get mad." He nodded and grabbed my hand to squeeze it quickly before walking off. I sighed watching him go.

"Jo can we go now? Let that loser be." Ricky sounded impatient. We began to walk out of the gate and waited for the bus. "Did you have a good time last night?" He asked obviously unenthused. I sighed and smiled.

"Yea I did. He isn't that bad." Lefty stepped in front of me.

"Are you kidding me? That rich scumbag?"

"Yea that rich scumbag. Anyway what happened when we left with the whole Wade thing?" I asked Ricky who was puffing on a cigarette.

"I told him it was a one time thing and that if he wanted you to go out with him just to ask me first." He said looking both ways for the bus. "And if he ever touched you like that again I would knock his lights out." He flicked the cigarette in the road.

"That's if you don't want me." Lefty added looking at Ricky for permission.

"Yea yea that too." The bus came into sight and stopped in front of us. Ricky stuffed the fare money in the box and led us to the middle of the bus. Lefty sat next to me and scooched closer to me. His body heat keeping me warm. Ricky looked at us and became uncomfortable so looked out the window instead. He bit his nails as the bus took us around the city. Finally it stopped in front of a trailer in the Blue Sky Industrial Park District. "Surprise! We are gonna get tattoos!" He said standing up and getting off of the bus. Lefty jumped off and high fived Ricky. I slowly got off feeling uneasy about what I was about to do.

"Really? Is that what I skipped school for?" I felt scared. Ricky and Lefty pulled me into the trailer.

"You go first so that you can get it done and over with. We are all getting the same thing." Ricky said obviously excited about the situation. He walked up to the artist and let him know that we were there. The man sat down next to the chair and asked the first person to sit down. I slowly began to walk over. Lefty grabbed my hand and pulled me back. His lips met mine. It was a moment I had been waiting for, for years now. His soft tongue slipped into my mouth. I embraced him and kissed him back intensely. Ricky pulled us apart. Never had I ever thought that the kiss would make me feel the way that it did.


	9. Wade's Second Chance

Chemistry class came a lot quicker than I had wanted it to. The incident with Wade happened only days ago, which was obvious because my scabs were still visible. He walked over to our station.

"Jo I am so sorry about the other night. I just…enjoyed our time together. It just infuriates me that you would even consider going out with that rich prick." He looked me right in the eyes as he apologized. It seemed like every guy had some reason to.

"Good morning class today we are going to be making stink bombs. Instructions on board and you may begin." Dr. Watts said looking through his papers on his desk. He picked up one and read through it quickly before throwing it away.

"Wade look there is just a lot going on. I am a new student and I was not expecting this much drama so soon." I said not really paying attention to him.

"Well can we make this less drama free? Will you go for a walk with me after school today?" I sighed thinking three dates three nights in a row? The date with Parker was perfect except for the incident before we left. Lefty although Ricky was right there, stayed by me as I got the tattoo that read 'RJL4E'. It was our names forever. The moment the needles started Lefty was right there holding my hand and kissing my temple telling me everything would be okay. The idea of yet another date with someone completely different again sounded good, but was I ready?

"Is this going to be a date or just two friends walking?" I had to ask.

"Whatever you want it to be." He said moving closer to me. I thought for a moment.

"Can it start out just two friends going out for a walk? We can just see what happens?" I could tell by the way he moved away that he wasn't happy with my answer, but hell it was that or nothing.

"Of course. Let's get this done and over with before Dr. Watts gives us detention."


	10. Sunset

Five o'clock came finally and I was walking toward the bike shop. On the way I saw some blond kid picking on a little girl. He held her books up higher than she could reach. As I walked by I grabbed the books out of his hand and gave it to the little girl. She thanked me and ran away. The boy angry that his game was ruined kicked the ground and walked away. As I turned the corner I saw Wade waiting by a broken down school bus.

"Jo! You came. I had my worries." He said jogging over to me. "Here get on the back of my bike." He said pulling a bike from the bike holder. I climbed on the back and held his waist tightly as he pulled away. We rode over the bridge toward Bullworth Vale. The first set of stairs he slowly stopped the bike and waited for me to get off. "Here I'll help you." He said holding out his hand. Even though I was off the bike he still grasped my hand. He looked at me to make sure it was okay. I pulled him toward the stairs. As we reached the bottom I let go of his hand and walked to the shoreline. I stuck my toes in the water and gazed out over it, the suns reflection almost blinding to my eyes. I felt Wade right behind me.

"I know that you like me Wade. I think you can be a really nice guy. I just don't know if I can handle all of these guys…" He wrapped his arms around me and kissed the back of my head.

"Can we just enjoy this?" As much as I like Lefty and starting to like Parker, there was something about how Wade held me close that made me want to stay. I turned around and kissed his cheek. He pulled me away from the water and sat down on the sand. I sat next to him and gazed into his hazel eyes. "Can I kiss you?" He asked.

"If you must." I said smiling. He placed his hand on my hip and leaned into me. As we kissed I thought of how hard my life had just become.


	11. Explanations

The rest of the week went by without any new boys asking me out. I felt relieved when Friday came and Ricky to me it was just the two of us going out to eat. We walked slowly to the fast food restaurant in Bullworth Vale.

"So how's it goin?" He asked paying close attention to hear ever word I would say. I shrugged.

"Fine I guess. Nothing bad this week." He looked to the right glaring at the boxing gym with hate.

"You still seeing that rich scum?" His head gestured to the gym.

"Well I'd like to but things are so crazy. I mean I still like Lefty, and there is this other guy from my Chem class."

"What guy?" He clenched his fists.

"Wade Martin." Ricky laughed and shook his head.

"Ha ha I could pound him with one hit." He shook his head still smiling. "Anyway you know who I would pick out of those three. But honestly I don't want you with any of em'."

"What why?" I was shocked.

"Well I hate rich kids; Wade would never be able to defend himself in a fight never mind you, and Lefty, well." He looked a little sad. "He's my good friend. I don't want to lose him because you guys didn't work out ya know. He was right there when _she_ broke my heart." He growled at the word 'she'. I knew that girl had broken his heart. And I also knew that Lefty was right there the whole time telling him to move on, just fix bikes, it was what he was best at and he loved doing it.

"Well then who would you think would be best for me out of the three?" He sighed as we walked up to the restaurant.

"Two cheeseburgers a large fry and a large cola." He said to the girl at the counter. He reached into his pocket and thumbed through looking for money. "Jo you got any change?" He asked turning slightly red. He would get a few bucks here and there for fixing bikes, but it just never added up. I reached into my purse and pulled out three dollars. I looked and saw the total was only six dollars. Ricky put in his three and we sat down at one of the tables. He sighed deeply and placed his head in his hands. "Jo I want you to just be happy with whoever you want to be with." He sat back and looked at the ceiling. "I cannot believe I'm gonna say this. I think Parker just because look how we grew up. We scrounged for money our whole lives. That kid was given fifties for just waking up every day. I want you to live a happy life with lots of money. One the other hand Wade's dad owns that seafood restaurant down the road. I don't think he had it quite as good as Parker, but he could still make you happy. And I'm sticking to what I said about Lefty. I would love to see you two together, but I just don't want to lose my best friend. That and if you do pick him, I hate to say this cuz I care about him but you will live the same life you are now" We sat in silence for a moment. I was trying to take it all in on what he said. The girl caught Ricky's attention and he walked up and grabbed our food. We ate in silence.


	12. Scary Movie

Lefty waited by the girl's dorm for me to return. It was obvious he was waiting for awhile because when he saw me he jumped up so quick I thought he would get whiplash.

"Jo I need to talk to you." He said barely acknowledging Ricky was with me.

"Okay." I said nodding to him and giving my brother a hug. Ricky walked away, hands in his pockets and looking down at the ground.

"Look I want you to come with me to see this movie. It's scary but I'll be there to protect you." He smiled. This would be my first one on one date with him and I couldn't be more scared. I looked around and saw Wade in the distance picking on his sister Christy. There was no sign of Parker anywhere.

"Alright but I want to go right now I have a lot of homework to do and it's supposed to be the last nice day on Sunday. I want to tan a little bit." He laughed and put his arm around me leading me out of the gates and toward the theater. One the way there I felt his hand squeeze my shoulder every time a male student walked by.

"Jo I need to talk to you about this whole dating thing. I talked to Ricky and he told me that you and I would not be a good idea just because of the whole 'it will ruin mine and his friendship' thing. I thought about it. I know that you have liked me for God knows how many years. But I do see his point. Jo I love you, and I would love to be with you, but I think you and I are better off as just friends." His words shocked me, but at the same time it was a relief. I was stuck choosing between three guys. All of them different.

"Well what if I said I liked you more than the others?" I asked. His solemn expression changed to stern.

"Jo don't even start that with me. I know how confused you are. I'm doing this because I care about you and I don't want you to stress out about all of this. If you do chose me in the end, great but if not I don't want you to have to worry about hurting my feelings." I grabbed his hand as we waited in line. He was telling me no way which was making me want to pick him more.


	13. Unexpected Visitor

So far I have had three successful dates with the three guys. Parker took me out to eat, and brings me new flowers just about every day. Wade took me to the beach and we watched the sun set and the stars come out. And Lefty, He took me to a scary movie. His arm was around me the whole time and by the end of the movie I was sitting on his lap. He kissed me gently and walked me home. I began to search for three pieces of paper in my room when there was a knock on my door.

"Come in!" I said looking into my desk finally finding a notebook. I turned to see Pinky standing in the doorway.

"Hi. Can I come all the way in?" She said not daring to cross the threshold. I walked over to my bed and sat down.

"If there is an apology in this visit then yes, if not then don't even bother knocking on my door again." She walked in and closed the door behind her. Slowly she walked over to the bed and knelt on the floor.

"Jo I _am_ sorry about the party. I was actually really excited about you coming. I had no idea you were Ricky's sister." She looked at the floor and played with the carpet. "Until that night I thought that being the only princess was wonderful. But now I realize I only have boys to talk to about my problems. We both know that Parker is falling for you hard, and to be honest even though you don't come from a rich family, it would be nice to have a girl friend." She said slightly glancing at me. As I was about to respond there was a tap on the window. I stood up and walked over. Ricky was standing below with a cigarette in his mouth throwing pebbles at my window.

"What?" I whispered loudly. His puffed the cigarette.

"I'm goin home tomorrow night you gonna stay here?"

"Why couldn't this wait til tomorrow?"

"Cuz you might have to pack? I don't know I'm just asking." I turned and saw Pinky still sitting on the floor glancing at her surroundings.

"No I'm staying here this weekend." He nodded and flicked the cigarette to the side of the dorm.

"Alright night kid I love you." He said turning away and walking back to his dorm.

"I love you too Rick." I pulled my head back inside and closed the window. Pinky jumped at the loud thud the window made when it closed.

"So that's the noise. You must talk to a lot of boys out of this window." She smiled devilishly. I shook my head.

"No Ricky comes by every night to make sure I'm okay." She stood up and walked over to my desk.

"He cares about you a lot huh?" She asked looking at my English papers.

"Yea he does. It's only since I've been here though. At home he would pick on me all the time and call me a loser. But now that boys are noticing me he is getting super protective. Anyway why are you trying to be nice to me?" I asked remembering that I was being apologized to.

"I know that you're going to think 'typical someone standing up for their own clique and screw everyone else', but honestly I think Parker is the best pick for you. Fine can I take you out tomorrow? Girl's day of shopping? My treat." She taunted. Never have I ever turned down shopping.


	14. Girl's Day

Pinky walked out of the dressing room wearing the latest Aquaberry skirt and shirt and modeled it for me. Deciding that she hated her body she suggested I try it on. As I pulled the shirt over my head the price tag stabbed me in the cheek. I grabbed it and looked. My head spun at the number on the tag. _$2,567_ I pulled the zipper up cautiously and walked out.

"Oh my gosh that is the one for you!" Pinky jumped and clapped her hands excitedly. I shook my head.

"No I can't afford this." I said sadly looking at the dress. It was an all black shirt and on the skirt part had rows of blue argyle the others black. She shook her head.

"I told you I am a princess I get daddy's card. You might get it someday." She said walking up to the register with her twenty items and the tag from my outfit. I shook my head thinking what just happened? Did this girl really walk up there with thousands of dollars worth of clothes and is now handing a credit card over? The man behind the counter placed all of her belongings into gift boxes and stacked them neatly into bags. "Oh I'll wear the glasses, earrings, bracelet, and the hat." She put everything on so carelessly. "Jo you want my old stuff? I'll never wear it again." I looked at the diamond earrings, the Aquaberry sunglasses, and the platinum tennis bracelet, and almost began to drool. I shrugged like it didn't matter. "Parker will love this stuff on you. Here I'll help you." She put the jewelry on me and stepped back. "So cute! Let's go!" She said walking out with out grabbing a bag. As the door opened a man stood right outside. "Seven bags today." She said and walked back toward the school.

"Where are we going now?" I asked. I couldn't take much more of this. I never knew how the rich kids lived but now I realize, it's just spontaneous.

"Gonna go show you off. Parker is boxing right now. You'll know if you look good if he loses his match. I bet he will." She giggled. "That and I want to see Derby." We walked into the gym. It looked like a normal gym that anyone could use, except there was a bodyguard at the door. Bif towered over us.

"What do you want?" He asked me getting into my face.

"She's with me Bif take it easy, go get yourself a dog biscuit." She said pushing by him I followed very closely. As soon as we were out of his earshot she turned around. "He is like a dog, he will do whatever Derby tells him to do. It's kinda funny." She smiled. I looked back and saw him giving a dirty look. Surprisingly it wasn't to me, it was to Pinky. She led me to ringside. As I looked up I saw Parker in his red and gold boxing uniform. My mouth dropped watching him bob and weave and punch Justin. Finally the bell rang marking the end of the round. He walked back to his corner, Pinky led me to it. "Hey Parker I have a present for you." Pinky teased. He slouched his shoulders and looked into the bright lights above.

"Pinky I'm not in the mood for stupid presents today. I got a lot on my mind…" He turned and looked down. His mouth opened in awe as I modeled my new outfit. The bell rang for the start of the second round. It only lasted ten seconds and Justin was down for the count. The bell rang again announcing Parker as the winner. He climbed out of the ring and looked me over. Sweat dripping from his body, he threw the gloves on the floor and kissed me in front of everyone.


	15. The Deal

Pinky ditched me to hang out with Derby so Parker offered to walk me back. On the way back we talked about how we should go out again maybe the carnival or something. As we turned the corner to go into the school grounds Wade stood arms crossed in our way.

"Jo I need to talk to you." He said very sternly. Parker stood in front of me.

"Not in that tone you're not." I could feel the anger come from Parker's body. Wade uncrossed his arms.

"Do you know how frustrating it is to see her with you? You are just going to show her a good time for a few months then leave her on the side of the road wondering what happened. She needs to be with a real man who makes his own living. Not someone who collects from a trust fund and has the street smarts of a toddler." Both of them moved closer to each other clenching their fists more and more as the space between them disappeared.

"At least I would be able to give her what she wants without even thinking of the price. She would be set for life with me. She wouldn't have to work one day for the rest of her life. With you it would be 'oh you want this designer purse for five hundred dollars, well I'll pay twenty for the generic one'. You loser." As if Ricky had some sort of sense of things going bad he walked out of the shadows, smoke surrounded his shadowy figure.

"Alright tough guys. Jo come here. You stand by me. Okay Parker how many dates have you had?" He said calmly. It was the nicest he had ever spoken to Parker.

"Just one."

"Wade?"

"One."

"Alright. This is the deal; you can take it or leave it. One more date each. Then she will sit down with me and we will discuss it. If I think either of your heads are in the wrong place, you're done. I mean it is her decision but I am going to give honest feedback." They both nodded in agreement. "I decide who goes out when. Deal?"

"Deal." They said at the same time. The three of them shook on it. Parker and Wade challenging each other with their eyes.


	16. Slingshots

Ricky decided the next day would be my date with Wade. As I prepared for the date, I heard a psst out the window. I walked over to see Parker standing outside with the most beautiful flowers in his arms. Out of all of the bouquets, these were by far the biggest.

"I brought you these to remind you that the best date is saved for last." I smiled and walked down the stairs to the outside. The girls walking in and out of the dorm gasped and whispered to one another.

"Why do you do this to me?" I asked taking the fragrant flowers.

"Because I want you to pick me in the end. I know that things got off to a really bad start with that whole party thing. I feel like I have to make it up to you." I kissed his cheek.

"You already have. Now let me finish getting ready I'll see you tomorrow sometime." I turned as I reached the door to see him watching me walk in. I walked back into my dorm room and looked around. If anyone walked in they would think I lived in a greenhouse by all of the flowers that took up all of my table space. I laughed to myself as I located a small cup to put old flowers in so I could use a giant vase for the new ones. Putting the vase in the window I glanced out and saw Ricky talking with Parker. Feeling curious I watched. They seemed to be getting along, they were laughing and high fiving each other. I wondered what they could possibly be talking about. As I cracked the window I saw Ricky hit the ground. Parker looked in all directions looking for the culprit. I saw Ricky's body twitch as if he was being shot with something invisible. Parker dragged him to the side and sat him up. I watched as Parker tapped my brother's face. I couldn't wait and I bolted down the stairs and ran to my brother's side.

"Ricky what happened?" His eyes looked dazed.

"I think it was a slingshot. Someone got him in the head." He peeked around the corner and became very pale. "Derby's coming." A moment later there he was standing over us like we were ants. Trailing behind him was Bif and Justin.

"Just as I expected, you were hanging out with the trash again. I saw you kiss her in the middle of my gym. How dare you disgrace us by bringing her around?" He scolded Parker.

"To be honest Pinky brought me there." I said standing up to the tall blond. He curled his lip at me.

"How dare you talk to me like that you poor scum. My cleaning lady I bet gets paid more than you entire family." He laughed loudly. Parker stood up and got between us. At that moment I felt really close to him. He was standing up to his friends…for me. "Stay away from her or I am kicking you out of the boxing club." I could see by the body language that that was the lowest blow for him. I watched as he hung his head and pondered on his decision. Ricky began to stir.


	17. The Carnival

Wade held my hand as we walked through the gates of the carnival. My mind raced with other things but I decided to put that all to the side and concentrate on having a good time tonight.

"What do you want to do first?" Wade asked. I pondered a minute. Find out what's going on at the school.

"Whatever you want to do. This is your chance to impress me." He squeezed my hand.

"Do you want to go to the far end and work our way back here? There is more planned tonight than just this." He smiled. I knew he knew that other things were on my mind.

"Sounds good." He led the way pushing people out of my way so no one would touch me. As we approached the freak show someone called his name. I felt his entire body tense up. An older man with the same colored hair as Wade only buzzed short approached.

"Son what are you doing here?" He asked impatiently.

"I'm trying to have a good time." He said gesturing toward me. His father just glared making me feel very uncomfortable.

"You plan on getting some tonight?" I felt the rage rush through Wade's hand.

"Dad come on can you just leave me alone for once. You are ruining my life."

"You don't think you ruin mine? The way you fight all of the time. I get more phone calls about you than I do from telemarketers. You are the worst child." Wade let go of my hand and walked away. I watched him walk around the corner like he was going to leave. I ran after him feeling terrible that his dad had just yelled at him, not only in public but in front of a girl has is obviously trying to date. I finally spotted him walking through the exit gates. I plowed people out of my way to catch up to him. Finally making it out of the crowd I looked around and realized I had lost him.


	18. Dark Alleys

Terrified I walked the streets alone. Adults turned to see me walking meekly behind them and scoffed.

"Stupid children think they know everything now a days."

"That and they think that they can do whatever they want and get away with it." I heard glass break across the street. I turned and looked to see Wade pick up something off of the ground and chuck it through the seafood store. Without hesitation I ran across to him. He was about to throw another object as I wrapped my arms around his body.

"Get away from me!" He shouted tears streaming down his face. I grasped him tighter as if he asked me to hold him.

"Wade please put whatever it is you have down and let's go. We need to get away from here before the police show up." He escaped my clutches and threw the object through the window on the top floor.

"Yea asshole! Think I didn't ruin your life enough? Wait til you get that bill!" I saw flashing lights out of the corner of my eye.

"Wade lets go the cops are coming."

"You're not going to pick me anyway, you spend all of your time with Parker. That and thanks to my dad who has to ruin everything for me."

"Please just come with me." I grabbed his hand and pulled half expecting him to let it go. To my surprise he followed. We ran to the back alley and came out in front of the movies where it was packed with everyone from school. No one would be able to accuse us now. But for some reason we crossed to the other side where no one was. He pulled me close and wrapped his arms around my shoulders.

"Why don't you like me?" He asked. He seemed really strange all the sudden.

"I do Wade. If I didn't why would I have agreed to this in the first place?"

"Prove it. Prove to me right now why I shouldn't just go turn myself in and call this quits." He stepped back and waited. I stood stunned at how he was reacting. At that moment I felt scared that something was going to happen and I would be stuck naked, dead or both in this alley. I took a step back.

"Wade you're scaring me." He took a step toward me.

"Jo I'm not going to hurt you. Your brother will kill me if that even pops in my head. I just want you to prove to me that you are just as serious about me as you are about Parker." Wondering what could possibly be going through his head I took a step toward him. The way things had been going tonight had not been my idea of a wonderful date. It was actually disastrous. But from seeing how his father acted toward him, made me realize why he seems to be off the wall a little. I took a deep breath.


	19. The Boat

Ricky walked me down to the beach a few days later and had me tell him every detail of my date with Wade.

"So do you like him or not?" He asked. I was distracted by the sight that was in front of me. I smiled as Parker ran up the beach. He kissed my cheek.

"Hey guys. Are you ready?" He asked me. I turned to Ricky.

"We have time to talk later. Parker dates are always fun." I said hugging him and kissing his cheek. I pulled away and Ricky gave me a worried smile. Parker held out his hand to my uneasy brother. They shook and Ricky waved us off.

"So how are you feeling today?" Parker asked as he led me around the corner to a small dock with a small boat attached. I beamed at him. I stopped walking. A few moments later he noticed. And turned around. "What's wrong?" He asked smiling at me.

"Is this for real?" I asked. His smile faded and he walked over to me. I held up my hand. "Don't come any closer to me until you answer. Is this for real?" Parker laughed.

"Are you serious? Jo I spent hundreds of dollars on flowers for you, I told Derby to piss off for you. What else do I possibly need to do to prove to you that this is real?" He asked obviously hurt that I was questioning his motives. "Jo I am really falling for you. Obviously if I wasn't I would have left with Derby the other day." He walked slightly closer and held out his hand. I took it and he led me to the boat the eagerly waited for it's passengers. I carefully sat down in the stern as he hopped in. He stayed at the bow. "Jo is this for real?" He asked me my same question. I stood up and made my way to the front. "No _you _have to stay there until you answer me." I didn't listen I was sitting almost between his legs before I sat back down. I grabbed the front of his shirt and pulled his face to mine. Why he made me feel the way he did is beyond me. But there was just something about how he looked at me, held my hand, and even the way his lips felt against mine, that I could not tear myself away. I think that was why Ricky was okay with him still being around. As I pulled away from him my smile appeared.

"Does that answer your question?" I asked softly. He turned and pushed the boat from the dock and positioned himself at the motor. He drove for a few minutes until we were almost in front of the lighthouse. He dropped the anchor until it reached the bottom and he moved next to me.

"I want to watch the sunset with you. I brought some food and a bottle of wine. Even if you don't pick me, I want you to remember this night forever." He turned around and grabbed the bottle of wine that was neatly wrapped in a towel and two wine glasses. He handed me the glasses and popped open the bottle. "Oh wait stand up for a sec." Everything about this time with him was wonderful, he could have asked me to jump overboard and just float there for days, and I probably would do it. I stood up and he took the seat that we sat on and removed it along with the one in front of us. Carefully he laid out a blanket. "Alright, you can sit down now." I obeyed. He poured the glasses and held his up. "This is to you, in hopes that after this is all over you make the right decision." I stopped his hand from bringing the glass to his lips.

"This is to us. I think I've already made my decision." He smiled brightly as we clinked glasses and took a sip.


	20. Late Night Visitor

It was well after curfew by the time I got back to my dorm. I lay in my bed and stared at the ceiling. I heard a creak right outside of my door and looked at my clock. _2:45am_ is what it told me. I rolled over and tried to close my eyes. I heard my door open. Assuming it was Mrs. Peabody I closed my eyes pretending to sleep. The hand that covered my mouth told me other wise.

"Shh Jo it's me. It's Ricky." My brother said quietly in my ear. I quickly turned over to see his shadowed face. "I knew you would still be up. So what happened? Do you think you know who you're going to pick?" I laid on my back and stared at my ceiling again.

"You know I know that you don't get along but I really like Parker. We had the best night and he just opened up to me about his family, the pressure of taking over his father's business, the pressure of his friends. I mean he told me everything. But Wade is completely different. He cornered me and told me to prove to him that he shouldn't give up. All it took was kissing him and he was all dopey again. Then he brought me to the lookout point and he just held me in his arms. He even told me he was starting to fall in love with me. I mean I am so confused."

"Okay look, you need to think about the good in them and the bad. If one overpowers the other than go for that one, if not give me the list and I'll tell you. I gotta get back to my dorm but make that list tomorrow. Love ya sis." He kissed my forehead and darted out of the room leaving me in the darkness.


	21. The Lists

I woke up the next morning and immediately grabbed the notebook. I thought I would start with Wade.

_Wade_

_-he's cute_

_-he's smart_

_-no clique drama_

_-the feeling I get when he wraps his arms around me ___

_-the way he kisses me_

_-adventurous_

_-he told me he loved me…_

_Negatives_

_-might have split personality_

_-bad anger problems_

_-terrible father_

_-constantly fighting with someone_

Hmm…not bad. I thought bad would outweigh the good. Now on to Parker.

_Parker_

_-super cute_

_-looks good when he's boxing ;)_

_-he looks me in the eye when he tells me how he feels_

_-Brings me flowers every day_

_-makes me feel like there is no other girl in the world as special as me_

_-his lips are so tender against mine_

_-his touch makes me tingle all over_

_-he's rich_

_Negatives_

_-MAJOR CLIQUE PROBLEMS_

_-flaunts the fact that he has money _

I looked at the lists and knew that Parker would look the best on paper. But the list length wasn't the problem. It was the fact on how big the problems were. The clique problem was about ten negatives on the list. I knew from the beginning I was going to really need Ricky's help. I quickly grabbed my notebook and ran to the boy's dorm. I stood outside for a total of five minutes before Ricky, Parker and Wade all walked out together.

"Hey beautiful! How are you feeling today?" Ricky asked enthusiastically. I shook my head. Wade and Parker knew what it meant. They knew I hadn't decided. Wade walked up to me and kissed my cheek before walking over with his friends.

"She still is stringing you around dude. Man that sucks. I've never had to work this hard to get a girl." Trent said to Wade as he approached. Wade walked with his head low and hands in his pockets. Parker walked up to me and grabbed both of my hands and put his forehead to mine.

"I know that you will make the best decision for you. Just know if you don't pick me I will wait for you." He let go of my hands and walked away. Ricky walked up to me and put his arm around my shoulder.

"Jo, I know that you are having a hard time figuring this out. Do you have the list?" I nodded feeling a tear come to my eye. I handed him the list as he sat on the bottom of the dorm stairs. "Parker's list of negatives is smaller than Wade's. But his friends are a big problem. I'd say this is a really tough decision for you. I don't like the preps but he does seem to care about you a lot. But Wade told you he loves you. Wow Jo just wow." He stared at my writing on the paper for an hour before handing it back and telling me it was all up to me. I needed another opinion.


	22. Lefty's Return

I found Lefty in the shop room fixing a bmx bike with Lucky. He saw me walk in and dropped the wrench.

"Hey what brings a beautiful girl into this place?" I turned red and hugged him.

"I have a big favor to ask you. I know you probably are going to feel hurt about this but I need you to help me with the Parker/Wade thing." His smile faded quickly as he stepped back.

"I can't Jo. I want to kill both of them because they are stealing my girl from me."

"You had…"

"I know I had my chance, but I knew it would be best for Ricky if I didn't. Say we were feeling 'romantic' one day and he walked in. I would lose him." I hung my head ashamed that I would bring him into this situation, but I needed him.

"Please Lefty. If you cared about me you would help me out. Just look at the two lists. I'll scribble out the names if that will make it easier." I looked with anticipation. Finally he gave in. I tore the names from the tops of the lists and scribbled out the rich part on Parker's, shuffled them up so even I didn't know who was who until I read them. I handed both lists to him and waited while he read.

"How bad are the clique problems?"

"They all hate me."

"Well now I know who's list this is." He read them over a few more times before handing me a list.

"Are you sure?" Lefty nodded.

"Both lists are good but this one is better for you. Just keep in mind if you ever need anything you can come get me and I'll be right there." I kissed his cheek and hugged him tightly. I turned toward the doors and exited the building, ready to tell the boys my choice.

**Alright guys this is the big finale. The endings are going to be prewritten and I will post the one you want, maybe I'll post both idk yet. But the last last chapter there is no changing it….. **


	23. That's Rich

I walked to the boy's dorm and waited for them both to come back. My hands were shaking along with the rest of my body. After about an hour Wade walked over with Trent and Davis. I gazed at the ground not knowing how I would break the news to them both.

"Hey Jo are you okay?" He asked as he sat next to me. I began to cry and buried my face in his white shirt. He put his arm around me and held me close. "Hey no matter who you pick you know that you had fun with both of us. And you know if things don't work out that the other will be waiting for you." I sobbed even harder.

"That's the same thing Parker said and I know for a fact that if I picked you he wouldn't be there and if I picked him you wouldn't be there." Davis walked over and sat on the other side of me, rubbing my back.

"Just think if the other one isn't, I will be if ya know what I mean." He joked. The comment made me smile slightly. I needed that relief even if it was only for a second. Wade held me for only a few more minutes before Parker walked up to us.

"Is this how I'm finding out?" He asked jealousy in his voice. I stood up.

"No I haven't told either of you yet who I picked." Parker stepped back. Wade went and joined him.

"I cannot stand here and watch this. Trent let's go and leave them alone." Davis said pulling a nosey Trent behind him.

"Just so you guys know I went to Lefty who helped me make my decision. This morning I made lists of the positives and negatives for both of you. Parker you only had two negatives but one of them is so big that I don't know how we would overcome it. I gave the lists to Lefty and he said that Parker's list was better for me." I began to cry again as Wade rolled his eyes and kicked the ground. "The clique issue is a huge issue, but I guess we will have to make it work. Wade I couldn't do it because that incident with your dad. Not on his part. You left me standing there by myself and I had to walk halfway back to the school by myself." He didn't even wait for me to finish before he walked away.

"I knew you would pick Mr. Trust Fund over here. Rich boys always get the girl because girls are selfish and just want more and more all the time. 'Oh get me a pretty bracelet oh get me this get me that' stupid. Thank you for wasting my time I'll see you in Chemistry." He said screaming all the way to his friends. Parker walked up to me and hugged me tightly.

"I knew you would make the right choice. I would never have reacted that way. And I promise you that no matter what it takes my friends will come around. I love you Jo." He kissed the top of my head and held me there until the sun set.


	24. Promise

I shook violently as I waited in front of the boy's dorm. A half hour went by until I saw both of them approach glaring at each other. I stood up quickly wanting to get this done and over with. It was one of the hardest decisions I ever had to make, but it had to be made. They both approached cautiously like they were waiting for a court hearing. I stood in front of both of them more nervous than I had ever felt in my life.

"Jo I already told you that no matter what you decide I will always be there for you." Parker said tenderly. I began to cry. I have dragged these guys along the past month and was about to let one of them go. I tried to regain my composure.

"You both know how much I care about you. And I know that dating you both would never be an option. I know that I wouldn't want that. Ricky couldn't help me. He just wished me luck and walked away. He knew that this was my decision. But I did ask Lefty for help. I gave him a list of the good and the bad with you guys. I took the names off and he picked…" I broke down in tears. I cared for them both so much. "Wade he picked you." Wade smiled brightly as Parker hung his head. "Parker I'm so sorry. If the clique thing wasn't an issue then we might have been able to work things out." I cried so hard the words were barely audible. He walked over to me and hugged me tightly.

"I understand. Remember that I said if things don't work out I'll be waiting for you." He kissed me cheek softly and walked away. I watched has he kicked the ground a few times before disappearing around the corner. Wade ran up to me and picked me up, spinning us in circles.

"I promise things will not be like they have been. They will only get better." I hoped so as he kissed me.


	25. Graduation

The years past and it was finally graduation day. Ricky and Lefty sat in the audience beaming at me as I stood up and walked to Dr. Crabblesnitch grabbing my diploma. They cheered and whistled as I waved to them going back to my seat. Once everyone was called up and we all sat waiting for the big announcement Lefty stood up in the audience. He ran as fast as he could up to the stage and grabbed the microphone. He spoke quickly but his last line was very distinctive.

"I am in love with a girl up here. Her name? Josephine Pucino. I have waited for three years to say this and now is the best time to do it. In front of everyone. Will you marry me?" The prefects trying to get him off the stage stopped and looked at me. I was in shock. I stood up and walked over to him tears running down my cheeks. Without hesitation I kissed him in front of the entire graduating class, all the parents, and even fellow classmates just there to watch their friends. Of course I said yes and we are now married with two kids. Their names? Wade and Parker. We named them after the two boys that made us realize that we were in love. Of course I dated both of them and at times I feel a little weird. But now you know the story of Ricky's sister and her crazy times at Bullworth Academy.


End file.
